Marino's

So, one of the biggest annoyances I have experienced since being on Okinawa is the lack of good food! Seriously, you'd think that since we are a part of Japan there would be some amazing Japanese food, or even Chinese food, etc. No Such Luck. One of the websites that many of the wives use as a reference for things to do and places to eat is called http://www.okinawahai.com/. There are TONS of reviews for restaurants, but as I've mentioned before, I wonder what kind of food these people eat back home, because I find many places that get rave reviews mediocre or just plain gross.
I'm sure nobody reads my blog anyway, but just in case someone from Okinawa wants to find some REAL good food, I thought I'd blog about it. In addition to my teaching shenanigans. And adventures. This is really turning into a schmorgesboard of a blog :)

So, this weekend we went to Marino's, which felt like a Japanese version of Olive Garden. They cook their pizzas in a real brick oven and they come out super tasty. There is not a ton of cheese, which I didn't know if I'd like or not since I'm definitely a cheese gal, but the crust was thin and chewy and the sauce was delicious. We all ordered the Margherita Pizza.


The ceasar salad was alright. Most of the ceasar salads do not come with ceasar dressing that I am used to eating in the States. It was more creamy and a lot less tangy. And of course the croutons are min-size. Still, I ate the whole thing and it tasted fine, just not what I was expecting!

Marino's also serves pastas and desserts. This cute little guy brought out this giant cheese, grated a bit on the top (the top dips in, like a crater!), put noodles in it, and mixed them around some before plating the dish. No idea what this was, but I'm going to find out and try that next time!

We didn't get photos of the desserts but you can buy little mini "cakes" which really range from cheesecakes, tarts, brownies, etc. They were delicious as well! We also saw that you can buy a whole tart/cheesecake up by the register!

Here they are cooking the pizza. I LOVE pizza like this!
Another fun thing about Marino's (and many places in Japan) is that they offer meal "sets" for 2, 3, and 4 people. The sets come with choices of pizza, pasta, drinks, desserts, etc. for the number of people ordering the set. They also have fondue, which I need to try (of course, its cheese!)

So, Marino's made the list of "decent food" in Okinawa. Here are a list of places I like that I haven't managed to snag pictures of:
1. Bella Napoli (pizza, but I think I actually prefer Marino's!)

2. Bollywood Dreams (Indian Curry)

4. Coco's (a chain curry restaurant that I SWEAR puts some sort of addictive substance in their food!)

5. Garlic House (go easy on what you order. The food was good but a bit of a garlic overload)

6. Gen Restaurant(Sushi, Tempura, Yakisoba, etc. Not the best, but one of the few places that a California Roll is "normal" way
7. Kami Sushi (in American village) We ate here for lunch and the sushi was good- not sure about the dinner menu
8. Gordies (Burgers-American Style!) You may find that the meat on the island is also "different". This place gets pretty close to the good old America, red meat, cholesterol spiking goodness!

Places to steer clear of- definitely not worth the money or stomachache!:
1. Peacock. If you hear of a lady raving about their AMAZING lemon chicken or their "to die for" fried rice, run away. The rice might be to die FROM.

2. Kitakaisen. Nothing special. The sushi was strange and the rest of the food was below par.

3. Beach Rock Village (hippy food/atmosphere). If you want a wild experience, do it, but be prepared to get lost and have food you could make yourself.

4. Paradise Curry. Now I feel like a hipocrite, because we have eaten here a few times. The curry is not bad, but I prefer Coco's 10 to 1! We only eat here when we are feeling like curry and walking around American Village.
5. MOS Burger or Freshness Burger. Fast food and NASTY

Until next time :)